The View From The Passenger's Seat.

[EyeInTheSky]

HPearlyretiree, you kill me! You know I met a real HP early retiree a few years back. While cruising around Scottsdale we came upon a gated community that we wanted to check out. We get to the gate and got to talking with the guard. Come to find out the "guard" at age 61 was a former AWA pilot. Apparently, he wasn't paid enough in his flying career and is now forced to work as a gate guard. God bless him, but it's wrong that someone with so much skill is one forced to retire at 60 and secondly didn't work for a company that gave a rat's butt about pensions. Its a sick world man and getting sicker with the slicko capitalist sucking away at the middle class.

 

[HPearlyretiree]

700, your source please?


From the website "Unionfreeamerica.com"

http://www.unionfreeamerica.com/decertifying_private.htm

Jobs with the railways and airlines are covered by the Railway Labor Act. The folks who wrote the Railway Labor Act couldn't imagine not having unions so the only way to get rid of a union under that law is to replace it with another. If you work for an railroad or airline and you want to be Union Free about the only thing you can do is write to your representatives in Congress and ask them to change the law. Don't hold your breath waiting for that to happen.

From the National Right to Work website:

Decertification under the Railway Labor Act

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Under the Railway Labor Act, railway and airline employees have the right to oust a union as their exclusive bargaining agent if a majority of the employees in a bargaining unit sign cards authorizing an employee in that bargaining unit to serve as their representative, and that employee files an application for “Investigation of Representational Disputeâ€￾ with the National Mediation Board (NMB). The NMB would then hold an election between the union and the independent representative. Detailed information about the NMB’s representation procedures can be found on its web site. The case that established the right of railway and airline employees to opt for non-representation is Russell v. NMB, 714 F.2d 1332 (5th Cir. 1983), in which a Foundation attorney represented the employees who wanted no representation. Unfortunately, you will not find any reference to this decision on the NMB’s web site, but the procedures described on that web site do apply to a “decertificationâ€￾ election under Russell. If you would like a copy of the Russell decision, please let us know (include your postal address), and we will mail it to you. Also, if you want legal advice in pursuing “decertificationâ€￾ under Russell, please notify us and your request for assistance will be referred to a Staff Attorney.



Of course the unions have tried to keep the Russell decision out of the knowledge of workers, including campaigns to remove any information regarding Russell from the workplace. And woe be to that individual that represents decertification, the union goons would make his life a living hell, using union goon tactics that were so in vogue among the thugs of yesteryear. Yeah, I want the mafia to know who I am, and where I live! :blink:

Face it, the Airline unions are living in the past, the waaaay past of when railroads meant something.

The world has changed, no one holds a gun to your head and makes you work for an airline, and the customer doesn't give a rats ass about your troubles.

 

[HPearlyretiree]

Oh well, I retired from AWA in my 30's, got a job that paid 2X what I made, and still have flight bennies! No, I am not a pilot, I have skills that transfer to any company, and can find work at most any company, without having to be a security guard!

The union mentality at US can't get over the fact that in the race, they are last and being lapped by innovative companies that do a better job.

Sorry to have to tell you the hard news, but you work for a crappy company, millions of Americans do, you don't get any special treatment, the failure of US will not create a national emergency.

I wish all the people at US well, I hope they realized that no job is forever, and if you aren't doing things to improve your resume, then you have yourself to blame.

 

[EyeInTheSky]

Oh well, I retired from AWA in my 30's, got a job that paid 2X what I made, and still have flight bennies! No, I am not a pilot, I have skills that transfer to any company, and can find work at most any company, without having to be a security guard!

[post="233674"][/post]​

HPearlyretiree, good for you. It's rare to know of someone who prospered under old Conway's airline gambling roulette.

 

[noluv]

pearly... i am very proud for you. but, what job did you get? while my friend was laid off she was working as a bartender...made tons more money than at us. but she was not happy. plus she had to pay 340.00 for health insurance thru cobra. this girl has her master's. she could go teach in a second at a community college, but she would not be happy. so let me ask you... are you happy???

 

[NYPD]

Passenger, your input is wasted on the pissed off union goons on this site. You see, they could care less about you, they just want to whine and have the airline industry be like it was in the 70's when they had no need to be innovative, competitive, and customer focused.


Company does not care about the employee = employee does not care about customer.

Employee does not care about customer = company does not care about customer.

Company does not care about customer = customer does not care about company.

Customer does not care about company = company goes away.

All because company does not care about employee. Very simple.

 

[HPearlyretiree]

Noluv, I miss the airline biz, but not the anemic amount of money I made, I couldn't afford to work there anymore, so I left. I already had another job lined up.

As for Conway, he wasn't so good, but a genius compared to Beauvais (that ain't saying much!

 

[A320 Driver]

And least our group does not have a god complex.

And when I am at work I give it my all to help turn the airplane as quickly as possible.

How many times have you refused to take an airplane when the autopilot is on MEL.

Don't you get paid to fly the plane, not a computer?

[post="233534"][/post]​

The same stupid question keeps coming up about autopilots. Here's your answer...NEVER. We hand flew a 727 once from DEN to SDF to DCA to ROA to INT. I haven't seen an autopilot on MEL in YEARS.

A320 Driver

 

[whatkindoffreshhell]

You folks have been trolled by a wind-up artist!

Go back and re-read the OP -- for a newbie he really knows quite a bit about the backroom finances of US (i.e gov't loans, selling off planes etc).

However I do find 700's continued false assertions about the previous week's events to be very amusing! You doth protest too much sir!

Certainly any pax who reads a newspaper should know the risk of flying on USAir. Nevertheless, they paid for a contract of carriage and should expect basic service.

If my bag is lost over Christmas then I don't care who dropped the ball -- I just want my bag, sometime soon please!

Sadly, this past week's episodes have caused the fat lady to start a-humming.

Good luck to all, I wish you wisdom in making your next choices.

 

[planeirish]

Everyone seems to be blasting this person because he experienced a major service delivery failure. Spent much of his holiday at the airport and not with family. Nobody seems to want to say I am sorry.

I want to offer a quote from the Good Book. It says Sampson slew a 1000 philistines with the "Jaw Bone of an Ass". It seems that relationships with Usairways customers are being lost by the management and employees "using the same weapon".

 

[RDU Jetblast]

There are too many posts to keep up with...Does anyone know if reservations have fallen off?

Good luck to you folks.

This is a messed up situation that was bound to bring USAirways to this place.

 

[Finish or Ignore]

Customer
Your post was informative and right on the money until the last paragraphs. I am not a union person and voted against being in a union, but, for you to blame the unions shows how little you really know about the operation of US. I spent about 60-70 hrs in five days (including day off) trying to help people solve problems. I too was at the airport at 1am Christmas night. At least you could get in your car and leave. Thanks for the business and I understand why you won't be back.

 

[resqicunurse]

You know I think people are a bunch of dumb a$$
It was not a labor dispute ..that cause the sickout ..people just making use of their sick banks I am betting it happens every year..
It was bad now because Usairways is understaffed......and maybe these employees should have used up their sick time througout the year..

If it was union organised it would not just be PHL ....

I am betting that those people who called in sick after seeing what happens are sick to their stomach that they did ..because they knew its there co-workers that paid the price and worse you lovely passengers..

[post="233495"][/post]​

Here's another perspective - I work in healthcare as a critical care nurse. I used to work at a hospital that was chronically short staffed. I could have worked every day if I had wanted to, and many times did. Frequently we would have "sick outs", planned or not, particulary at the holidays. Because I actually care about the patients, I never did this...and, when others did, it really scre&#* the rest of us who then had to take 3 or 4 ICU patients when the max is supposed to be 2. Unlike the airline, we can't just let the patient sit on a baggage carousel for 4 days, then send it back with a "free bypass" coupon. You had to get the work done and the patients served. It stunk, but it had to be done. When I see "people are just using their sick time up" , especially over the busiest flying weekend possible, I get downright ugly. People have no work ethic anymore and obviously don't care if the traveler's holidays were ruined. Quit blaming management...it is not 100% their fault. Yes, my hospital should have hired more nurses, should have staffed better, but the coworkers of mine shouldn't have called out either. It's blame on both sides & it only hurts the customers...without whom you wouldn't have a job. Get it together & turn things around or quit & move on...quit leading the consumer on. I for one am as US Silver & still fly regularly - I hope you can all work this out for my continued service, but if not, there's any number of other airlines that I can use.

Good luck folks....

 

[javaboy]

what happened was wrong. what happened was the direct result of less than 1% of the employee population yet the other 99% are going to feel the effects.

once again lack of management and management skills at the top of this corporation boiled over into a mess that was "unmanageable" or beyond the current managment teams capabilities.

Yet the front line worker that did show up paid the heaviest price those are the ones that showed up in the 80s, 90s during tough times and now the 2000s.

to the traveling public that thinks another airline will come along. dream on. you will be inserted, packed or otherwise made to fit into exisiting remaining flights of other airlines, no they are not going to jump in with more planes to recover the seats lost by a demise of UAIR. as even the poster orginally indicated there is overcapcity therefore there will not be addtional replacement flights, instead of say pit or phl or clt you will be funneled through ord, dfw, atl, msp, dtw, ewr, iah more than likely on regional jets. and now instead of 70% load factors they will see high 90s making them just barely profitable. so then you will complain there is no room not because of the seats but because the plane is so full it just feels smaller. well that is the price of the cheaper ticket. a certain amount of revenue must be generated by the plane you can do it will all low fares or just a few high ones or a combination of fares. the gross revenue must achive a certain amount if not the flight simply will be canceled in future schedules (even with 100% load factors) some cities wont get service (ERI ABE HAR) and southwest aint coming soon to towns like that.

try riding air tran to oh say London, or Hawaii, same for SWA, can't do it. it doesnt fit in their business model. as it was years ago driving to a large enough city for air service will begin to become the norm again (think cities bigger than 1.om population or in desolate areas (out west)) as the ones getting air service.

Time once again to wheel out Al Kahn and let him tell you (the traveling public) what a huge success deregulation is. The entire US aviation system is in shambles and simply put must be fixed one way or another.

if you (traveling public) think that good riddens is the answer. imagine if you will Delta filing in 2005, and shedding its pension like UAL has done (is doing) the collapse of the PBGC will demand congressional intervention (think savings and loan of the 80s) simply because it must be done like it or not. then what to avoid booking on a bk carrier because you fear loss of $$ for ticket or a sudden weekend like what happened to UAIR @ PHL (again which was wrong to do...as an outside observer) you could very well not be booking on AMR, DAL, CAL, (all possible bk candidates within next 6months) UAIR, UAL, Hawaiian, Aloha, ATA, probably Independence Air. ok there's always Airtran (lost money last quarter) Southwest (admits when hedging runs out things will be quite different profitwise) Jetblue (-preannounced possible loss 4qtr) but lets see Jetblue travels to what 24 cities? SWA only 60 and airtran? if you leave in or near those cities you win, if you dont you lose.

years ok salaries and prices peaked, now i feel they are bottoming. either all the airlines will file BK to "level the field" or more correctly prices will begin to rise as airlines realize they can not go everywhere all the time. their networks will retract giving certain airlines geographical dominance and pricing power. you want service/price out west? probably AWA, back east? JB AT, you want to go between or international AMR, DAL NWA, CAL for you. in other words the circle is continuing to form like the "trunk carriers" of the 60s i think in the next 10 years you will see something similar. lets see if this holds true. if so other predictiable (my opinion only) events might include
DAL selling Comair (while most will think it will be a way to ratchet down costs to lower bidders in a way similar that UAL did with ACA/Independence...now that Independence is bidding on the UAL contract again) it actually (again my opinion) indicates DAL needs cash fast and very badly (thus the BK prediction) if they are unable to sell at a descent price and oil does not spend any time below 35 a bbl DAL could file before june 05.

Independence even quicker than that if something is not resovled with UAL (new contract) in the first 90 days of 05 (this is not liquidation but BK filing)

I suspect that along with SWAs purchase of ATA's MDW assets something else has been agreed to with at least one other airline. (just my opinion)

UAIR in dire straights needs to rally the troops and calm investors, and allow the "experts" to point to a plan that says its a long shot but it just might work. something like this Robert Crandell former Ceo of AMR is appointed to CEO of UAIR or Gordon Bethune former CEO CAL. this gives immediate assurance to the street and experts that the game is now serious, a proven leader in the aviation game will fix this mess. as for funding that person or one like that dollars will flow for the opportunity to fix UAIR (yes even RSA might let another cash infusion go if proper leadership with a plan is offered up) this will even satisfy the federal government (atsb people) If this happens and happens in short order. and a short term confidence building (for traveling public as well as employees) is unveiled rapidly then UAIR will still be flying christmas 2005 and most likely will be talked about as the turn around of the year (think Lucent).


While Low cost carrier expand domestically i would expect the legacy carriers will finally realize their hidden strengths and begin to exploit them. There is no pricing power (fare wars) on overlapping routes. so instead of pouring flights on to combat the loss of market share, they will instead keep a token few (probably their regional partners on it) and begin to empahize what LCCs can not offer international long range flying. or to destinations LCCs simply wont or can not go. (think Europe, Asia, ect...) watch for pricing power to begin to recover there first and with a retraction in money losing overlapping routes balance sheets will stablize, at the same time the LCCs will now co-exsist with the Legacies each respecting the others "turf" in 12-18months ticket prices will on average begin to rise and stick somewhere in the 7-12% higher than today mode. this will have a calming effect on the industry (the worst as past syndrome) and will a bit more stable pricing, more confidence in the industry, a better product will be offered to the consumer and flying while on fuller planes will become more "human". this will be against the backdrop of an improving US economy. Oil as well will begin to find its range perhaps 37-42 a bbl while not great (as saudia aribia puts it) we do not which to kill the golden goose just choke it a bit. the US economy needs oil to function, if America gets the sniffles the world catches cold. it benefits the world economy to have america in a way that keeps the money flowing.

thanks for listening to the macro, micro, aeronatuical economic rant!

I wish you all the best for 2005. may it be better for each and everyone of you than 2004.

B)

 

[Doc]

Wow……What a pathetic rant all because you lost your bag. You’re just another republican looser who thinks we all should be workers at will. Corporate makes a few mistakes just lower the workers wage raise there health care cancel their pension that will make stock holders happy and if that doesn’t work lay a bunch off work the crap out of them no one will notice. We will get our bonus and the world just keeps going around and around. Well I bet you are noticing now.

I bet you didn’t even read any replies.

Host I recommend trashing this thread due to insightful language……..

You should try posting your bag claim number here I’m sure someone here would love to help you.
If that doesn’t work try bag heaven….we send a few there from time to time.